My First Post

This is my first posting on this blog. Funny that it took me almost to the end of my time here to finally get around to pen something. It's the home run to the end of my course and I'm taking a quick breather away from the assignments, preparing for finals and project work to add a few words.

Only newsworthy thing that happened this week was that I bumped in to Mdm Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice showing the visiting Australia Foreign Minister Downer around the University. It was a very discrete event and I was one of a few students that happened to be at the main quad on Thursday morning. Would have stopped to say hi if not because I was on the way on take a midterm and that they were surrounded by a ring of Secret Service Personnel. Not quite the recommended way to get my stay here extended.

french desserts #2

this is the teacher, a French lady, whose Swedish husband is here for his PhD

busy in action in the kitchen (for this class, i was the only non-Japanese in a class of 6 students)

this is a picture from the previous French crepe class

learnt how to make another common French dessert, profiteroles.

it is usually eaten with ice cream in the middle (it looks like a cream puff pastry, but it is much lighter and fluffier) and hot chocolate sauce drizzled on top, with fresh fruits on the side!

the dough pastry used for this dessert can also be used to make French éclairs and other French desserts - i was hoping to try making éclairs when we go back to Singapore (that is, after I get my own oven)

De Young Museum and Strybing Arboretum

went on a Wednesday tour organized by the I-center last week to De Young Museum and Strybing Arboretum in the San Francisco Botanical Gardens (yes, despite my "busy" studying schedule, I decided I should make the most of my remaining time here to enjoy San Francisco and its wonderful places of interest).

the weather was perfect that day, and we started our trip with a visit to the 8th floor Observatory at the De Young Museum where we had a bird's eye view of the Golden Gate Park and beyond. The De Young Museum's architecture tries to blend the building with its nature surroundings, and the Arboretum was a great place to stroll through with separate areas dedicated to flora from different parts of the world.

at the end of the trip, I was quite thrilled to see a family of ducklings with the mother duck enjoying the afternoon sun by the pond! we don't get to see much of this in a concrete jungle like Singapore...

these are the pictures from the trip:

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Panic

it is funny how panic always sets in when you realized you ONLY have 3 weeks left before the exam day! it does not matter that you have consistently studied during the past 3.5 months, because a lot of it comes down to memorizing the stuff that you have read and understood, in the last 2 weeks or so before the D day!

every time during this period for the past 4 times I have taken this exam (2 successful occasions for Levels I and II, 2 failed attempts for Level III), it is the same kind of panicky feeling, and the same feelings of despair, regret (at signing up), promises of never to sign up again if I fail, praying hard I can memorize all the important stuff that is gonna show up on that day...

oh well, i can only try my best and hope for a miracle!

Spidey 3

yup, we went to watch Spiderman 3 with fellow residents of Barnes Court last Sunday! Free! Yay!

For those who haven't watched it yet, I don't want to divulge too much of the plot. But it follows pretty much the previous 2 series, with Pete and MJ still in a tussle over their relationship, Spiderman trying to catch bad guys but this time round, there are a few new elements that came into play...

go watch it, especially if you are a big Spiderman fan!

french desserts #1

started a French dessert class on Thursday - we learnt how to make crepes, a staple dessert item on French menus.

the recipe is surprisingly easy - it is just flour, eggs and milk, very much like pancakes! the secret lies in the swirling of the batter in the pan to create a crispy, thin crepe that you can easily whisk off the pan later.

we had fun in the kitchen, and the teacher bought so many fillings for us to choose from to go with the crepes! there was nutella, jams, ice creams, fresh fruits...it is really up to your imagination how you want to create your own crepe!

these are the 2 crepes i brought back home for HL and me...

my office

yes, this is the office that I have occupied for the past 4 months working as a "senior accountant" in a venture capital company (the truth is, the job nature is more like an a/cs assistant. But hey, this is Silicon Valley, and people give themselves big titles and big pay checks for their jobs here!)

Not bad for a part time contract position. I got my own room, there are 2 windows in the room, letting the sunlight stream in...heck, i even got a potted plant in my room!

food glorious food

maybe it is due to our impending return to Singapore, but I have been thinking a lot lately about food back in Singapore....these are some of the foodstuff i daydreamed about....

breakfast: the fish or pork and egg porridge, mee chiang kueh, char bee hoon with vegetables and fishcake, you tiao and "butterfly" pastry;

lunch: fishball noodles, yong tow hoo, chicken rice

dinner: BBQ fish and squid, hokkien mee, char kueh teow

dessert: cheng teng, ice kachang, ice jelly

....and knowing that I can soon lay my hands on these foods just make them more irresistible!
:P

disastrous breakouts

for the past week or so, angry red pimples have been popping up on my face...can't understand why i am still getting acne breakouts at the grand old age of 31, or why sometimes, my face seems fine, but other times, those pores just got clogged so easily and out pops a pimple!

Could it be due to these recent events:

a) return to snacking after staying off chips and my office's M&Ms for a few weeks in an attempt to lose some pounds (and it didn't help that Ben recently gave us a HUGE bag of absolutely heavenly tasting caramel and cheese popcorns his wife bought from Chicago)

b) dirty pillow cases and towels

c) that time of the month

d) all of the above?

In any case, I am just praying that those pimples will subside soon and not leave any permanent marks on my already blemished face! Arrghh!

ikebana #5

Shabu Shabu

This is a Japanese dish, where thin slices of beef (or chicken) are cooked quickly by dipping them in a hot boiling pot of water or stock, along with vegetables and whatever else you feel like adding in. It is extremely tasty and healthy (if you choose lean meat)! Yum!

We went for this meal with Ben at a shabu shabu restaurant in Mountain View last Sunday - as you can see, we had a great time there! :)

individual self-saucing chocolate puddings

this is the name of the dessert - I made it while watching TV at the same time (attempt at multi-tasking), as one of my favorite shows was on - The Amazing Race! :)

Tasted pretty ok but the bottom part was a bit "wet" - not sure whether it is meant to be like that, or I didn't do a good job...